A unique and distinctive culture emerges from the Burning Man experience. Rooted in the values expressed by the Ten Principles, this culture is manifested around the globe through art, communal effort, and innumerable individual acts of self-expression. To many, it is a way of life.

From the BLM page you can get a PDF copy of the assessment by clicking on the Documents link on the left side of the page and then clicking the document link. It's a 16MB download, I'm curious to check it out.

The event would last 192 hours (8 days) starting no earlier than 12 PM on the Sunday that falls eight days before Labor Day and ending no later than 11:59 PM on Labor Day. For 2012, the event would commence at 12:01 AM the Monday before Labor Day, and end at 11:59 PM on Labor Day. The Proposed Action would potentially use daytime opening and closing times on a trial basis for the first year to allow for safer ingress and egress to the event for staff and partici-pants by maximizing use of daylight hours.

The applicant rented 34 generators to power its operations during the 2011 event and surveys taken during the 2011 event found participants used 213 generators for art projects, 1,124 generators for theme camps and motor homes, and another 550 engines for mobile art or mutant vehicles.

The Lady with a Lamprey

"The powerful are exploiting people, art and ideas, and this leads to us plebes debating how to best ration ice.Man, no wonder they always win....." Lonesomebri

Under the 58,000 to 70,000-Person Maximum Alternative (Proposed Action), the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) would issue a five-year Special Recreation Permit (2012-2016) for the Burning Man event in Pershing County, Nevada, with a maximum population from 58,000 to 70,000 people. The authorized officer would determine the maximum population within this range for each year of the five-year permit..

Ok so wait.. if I'm reading this correctly, they aren't asking for a steady increase each year.. but a year by year assessment and decision? Meaning that this year.. for 2012.. we could see a granted* population cap of 70k?

..and the subsequent release of 13k more tickets?

*edit

Last edited by junglesmacks on Mon Mar 19, 2012 11:23 am, edited 1 time in total.

Under the 58,000 to 70,000-Person Maximum Alternative (Proposed Action), the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) would issue a five-year Special Recreation Permit (2012-2016) for the Burning Man event in Pershing County, Nevada, with a maximum population from 58,000 to 70,000 people. The authorized officer would determine the maximum population within this range for each year of the five-year permit..

Ok so wait.. if I'm reading this correctly, they aren't asking for a steady increase each year.. but a year by year assessment and decision? Meaning that this year.. for 2012.. we could see a grated population cap of 70k?

To make that assumption would probably be a mistake. BLM tends to work and moves incrementally. A permit covering the span of 5 years would need to have the full range of populations, that doesn't mean that even if Burning Man had the infrastructure and resources in place to support 70K this year the BLM would allow it in 2012.

And remember, in addition to Alternative 1 (population 58K-70K over 5 years beginning in 2012), there's an Alternative 2 (50K cap…awkward), and an Alternative 3 (no permit issued). Section 2.4 is an interesting read (so far), exploring the options that were eliminated from consideration as well as the reasoning.

Indeed. This is the Environmental Assessment, not the permit. Basically the EA is to gather together in one place the pertinent information on which to base a decision. There's going to be a whole lot of interesting stuff in there, but thinking of new numbers is just prematurely hatching 13,000 chickens.

The Lady with a Lamprey

"The powerful are exploiting people, art and ideas, and this leads to us plebes debating how to best ration ice.Man, no wonder they always win....." Lonesomebri

An estimated breakdown of the types of vehicles traveling to the event using public roadways is: 65 percent light-duty trucks, vans, SUVs, and autos; 6 percent medium-duty trucks and box trucks; 26 percent recreational vehicles (RVs) and motor homes; 3 percent heavy-duty trucks, tractor trailers, and buses (BRC, 2011c). Approximately 89,600 one-way motor vehicle trips (or 44,800 round trips) would occur for a population of up to 70,000 people, based on the historic trend in total vehicle trips per guest. Based on data from the applicant and Nevada Department of Transportation (NDOT), peak traffic occurs on Labor Day (Monday) and the Sunday before Labor Day as people exit the event site. Traffic exiting the event would be regulated by the appli-cant using real-time reports from personnel stationed at off-site locations.

The applicant has adopted a Controlled Substance and Alcohol Use Policy, which is included as Appendix 3. Terms on the back of the 2012 Burning Man Ticket to Black Rock City state that the ticketholder agrees to read and abide by all rules in the Survival Guide and to follow federal, State and local laws. In addition to these terms, the applicant would use its communications networks, such as Burning Man “Survival Guide” and public bulletin boards at the event, to educate participants of applicable federal, State and local laws concerning the sale and use of illegal substances.The Burning Man “Survival Guide” would state that the use and possession of illegal drugs is against the law and would summarize the legal penalties for any participant convicted of illegal drug possession or use. It also would inform participants that there are Pershing County officers, Federal BLM Rangers, and Nevada Department of Investigations officers at the event to enforce laws and provide safety for citizens at the event. Furthermore, the Burning Man Survival Guide would warn participants of the health risks inherent in consuming alcohol or illegal drugs in the harsh desert environment and that underage drinking is against the law.

As discussed in Section 2.1.8, a medevac helipad would be designated and reserved for emer-gency use/evacuations at the Black Rock City Airport. The applicant would contract with a pri-mary and secondary provider of helicopter-based medical evacuation for critically ill patients. Five helicopters are currently available under these two providers in the event of multiple criti-cally ill patients.

I thought that the newest contractor didn't have helicopters...

The Lady with a Lamprey

"The powerful are exploiting people, art and ideas, and this leads to us plebes debating how to best ration ice.Man, no wonder they always win....." Lonesomebri

A minimum age limit for attendance was suggested during scoping. The Burning Man event complies with all laws and regulations, none of which require an age restriction. Participants have chosen to be at the event and/or have paid for a ticket. Therefore, whether a minor should attend is up to the discretion of his or her parent or legal guardian. Additionally, as stated in the Operating Plan (Appendix 2), the applicant would develop and implement a plan to address exposing minors to adult activities at the event. The plan would include measures such as educating and requiring parents/guardians to supervise their children, zoning the city, and making every effort to educate adult-related theme camps about the need for having a gatekeeper during hours when the camp might not be suitable for minors.

The Lady with a Lamprey

"The powerful are exploiting people, art and ideas, and this leads to us plebes debating how to best ration ice.Man, no wonder they always win....." Lonesomebri

One cultural resources survey is reported for a one-mile radius around Black Rock Hot Spring. However, based on the site records available, at least three surveys have taken place in the area. These surveys have resulted in the identification of at least 21 isolated artifacts, ten prehistoric sites, two multicomponent sites, one unidentified site, and a segment of the Applegate-Lassen (CrNV-02-822) Route of the California National Historic Trail. Historic documents report that this historic campsite, lush meadow, and waterhole along the Historic Trail were the junction of the 1852 Nobles Route and the Applegate-Lassen Trail. From here, the Nobles Route headed to the southwest to Granite Creek and Great Boiling Springs (future site of Gerlach, NV). Recorded sites in this vicinity tend to be prehistoric quarries with associated lithic scatters. Five of the 14 sites, including segments of linear sites, are considered eligible for NRHP.

I like that.

The Lady with a Lamprey

"The powerful are exploiting people, art and ideas, and this leads to us plebes debating how to best ration ice.Man, no wonder they always win....." Lonesomebri

trilobyte wrote:Overall though, it's total logistics fetishist porn. A dry read, but lots of great info.

I read 40 year old Operating Agreements and leases for a living. This reads like Dan Brown compared to that.

But then I'm one of those kids who used to read the encyclopedia for fun.

EAs, their big siblings, EISs, and cousins such as California EIRs, have prose styles weighed down by the triple burden of being technical, bureaucratic and legal documents. Although, I'm doing okay with this one, so far.

The Lady with a Lamprey

"The powerful are exploiting people, art and ideas, and this leads to us plebes debating how to best ration ice.Man, no wonder they always win....." Lonesomebri

It would be a challenge. With a population in the neighborhood of 58K the number of vehicles is estimated at 37,120 - when we get to 70K that would increase to an estimated 44,800. The limit of 1,000 cars per hour during Exodus would not change.

Yep - a net increase of nearly 8K. That's total vehicles, which would include infrastructure and other equipment/support vehicles. Bless them for the level of detail. Based on an earlier study that shows 1 in 6 vehicles out there drips oil, that would mean 7,467 vehicles dripping 2,240 ounces of oil per day, coming to 87.5 gallons. Ow - don't forget to put an oil pan, tarp, or cardboard under your vehicle!

The Black Rock Desert playa and NCA are notable for their exceptionally pristine, unpolluted night skies. Little or no man-made light is present in much of the playa and NCA, making dark skies a valued resource of the area. Light pollution in the area consists of dispersed pinpoints of lights associated with the Hycroft Mine, Blue Mountain Geothermal Development Project, and the towns of Winnemucca and Gerlach (BLM 2012). When not near the light sources, night sky showed stars that were bright and that overpowered the man-made light (BLM 2012). Burning Man has taken place on the playa since 1990 and has resulted in light pollution during the event. Light from the event such as from the burn events was visible at night for several miles.

No mention of it here (yet), but BLM is studying a proposal to open/expand a gold mine that will have lights that we might see from BRC.

The Lady with a Lamprey

"The powerful are exploiting people, art and ideas, and this leads to us plebes debating how to best ration ice.Man, no wonder they always win....." Lonesomebri

I couldn't save the table structure without a lot of work, and it wouldn't have been very pretty, either. But I'm guessing that CA vehicles count for a considerable percentage... Are all those smog restrictions keeping the numbers for CA emissions low?

The Lady with a Lamprey

"The powerful are exploiting people, art and ideas, and this leads to us plebes debating how to best ration ice.Man, no wonder they always win....." Lonesomebri

Potential direct GHG emissions from fuel use during the event itself and by transportation to and from the event each year would be approximately 12,700 tons of CO2e or less than half of the 25,000 MTCO2e (27,558 tons) threshold to trigger a quantitative analysis

The Lady with a Lamprey

"The powerful are exploiting people, art and ideas, and this leads to us plebes debating how to best ration ice.Man, no wonder they always win....." Lonesomebri

trilobyte wrote:Yep - a net increase of nearly 8K. That's total vehicles, which would include infrastructure and other equipment/support vehicles. Bless them for the level of detail. Based on an earlier study that shows 1 in 6 vehicles out there drips oil, that would mean 7,467 vehicles dripping 2,240 ounces of oil per day, coming to 87.5 gallons. Ow - don't forget to put an oil pan, tarp, or cardboard under your vehicle!

The challenge would be to have a mobile system, dragging a kiddy pool under the RV

Excuse me Ma'am, your going to feel a small prick._______________________________________